UNLV Announces 2024 ESPN Research Fellowship Recipients in Gaming and Sports Media

The University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) International Gaming Institute (IGI) has unveiled the recipients of the prestigious 2024 ESPN Research Fellowships.

Exploring New Frontiers in Responsible Gambling

The 2024 fellowship has been awarded to five exceptional individuals from diverse academic backgrounds, each proposing innovative research projects aimed at enriching the dialogue around responsible gambling:

  • Dr. Hannah Borenstein, from The University of Chicago, will analyze the impact of gambling on track and field and marathon viewership.
  • Mr. Chance Dow, a Master’s student at the University of Memphis, will focus on the effectiveness of gambling messages among college students, with a particular emphasis on gender dynamics.
  • Dr. Eric R. Louderback of Harvard Medical School plans to study the effects of responsible gambling messages in sports gambling advertisements on social media.
  • Dr. Brian Petrotta from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Dr. Travis Bell from the University of South Florida will collaboratively analyze the portrayal of gambling during live broadcasts of March Madness.

Commitment to Innovation and Education

Dr. Brett Abarbanel, Executive Director of IGI, expressed excitement about the fellowship projects. “IGI is tremendously excited about these projects. A key goal of this initiative is to support innovative and impactful research to better understand the rapidly changing global sports and betting environment. This research represents a broad range of perspectives on how gambling is represented in sports media and holds important implications for all gambling stakeholders,” she said

Kevin Martinez, Vice President of ESPN Corporate Citizenship, also emphasized ESPN’s dedication to supporting research that advances responsible gaming standards. “ESPN is proud to work with IGI to advance responsible gaming standards through this comprehensive research. These diverse research projects will help to inform how the industry can continue to respond to and improve upon responsible gaming practices in the sports entertainment ecosystem,” he added.